Chapter 74: I’ll Fetch Water for You at School Every Day
For some reason, even though Yang An’s tone wasn’t exactly harsh, Yu Deng felt strange every time he heard him speak.
It wasn’t a very comfortable feeling.
Without lifting his eyelids, Yu Deng pressed his lips together and gave a curt, “Mhm.”
After the meeting, Yu Deng went to copy a version of the class schedule. He discovered that classes weren’t actually scheduled from morning until night every day.
The three of them went to the cafeteria for dinner before returning to the dormitory.
Yu Deng slumped over his desk, already wanting to go home.
Just as he was thinking this, Jian Ling, who was dripping with sweat from the heat, spoke up.
“Honestly, why can’t university students just commute?”
“There isn’t even an air conditioner in this dorm. It’s hot enough to kill someone.”
“Yu Deng, the hot water is ready. Do you want to go bathe?”
Although the little villain was lazy and loved to eat, he was still very fond of cleanliness. He immediately perked up.
“Yes!”
Since it was still the height of summer, not many people were taking hot baths. In their dorm, only he and Jian Ling went.
The bathhouse was two hundred meters away from the dormitory building. Following his roommates’ example, Yu Deng wrote his name on his thermos with a marker, found his pajamas, grabbed a bucket, a towel, and his body wash.
By the time he finished gathering all these things, Yu Deng was already exhausted. He didn’t even want to go bathe anymore.
In the past, even the water in the bucket was always mixed to the perfect temperature for him by Zhou Yuejun.
Yu Deng also took along the simple cloth curtain Zhou Yuejun had made for him. Fortunately, others were doing the same—Jian Ling included—so it didn’t draw much attention.
After his bath, Yu Deng had to go fetch water and then lug it back to the dorm, huffing and puffing the whole way.
“I’m so tired~”
How could taking a single bath be this exhausting?
He didn’t want to be a clean person anymore.
Bored to death, Yu Deng started playing with a game console.
The handheld was Ning Qian’s—an imported foreign model. It instantly caught his roommates’ attention, and even Jian Ling crowded around to watch.
With so many people around, Yu Deng felt so hot it made him irritable. He simply stopped playing and climbed into bed to read a book.
Of course, it wasn’t one of the textbooks issued by the school; it was one Qiao Fangyu had brought for him.
Every floor had a restroom and faucets. Some people who didn’t care for hot water just rinsed off directly in the restroom, saving them from paying the water fee.
The dorm leader had just returned from washing up.
“Stop playing and go wash up quickly. The lights are about to go out.”
Lights out?
Nanda turned off the lights at ten o’clock, and that was also when the curfew started.
Yu Deng bolted upright on the bed. He practically jumped down the ladder; the thud of his landing looked like it would make anyone’s feet ache just watching.
He ran two steps toward the door before abruptly turning back to scramble through his bag for money.
Oh no!
He had been so engrossed in his book that he completely forgot he was supposed to call Zhou Yuejun at nine.
As Yu Deng ran downstairs, he glanced at his watch: 9:47 PM.
Fortunately, no one was using the phone by the dorm warden’s station.
The phone rang with a dudu sound, and Yu Deng’s heart raced along with it.
He was calling so late; would Zhou Yuejun be angry?
“Hello, I’m looking for—”
“It’s me.”
Before Yu Deng could finish, he was cut off by the muffled, gravelly voice on the other end.
It was Zhou Yuejun.
Had Zhou Yuejun been waiting for his call this whole time?
There were so many mosquitoes in the summer; who knew how long Zhou Yuejun had been standing there feeding them.
In an instant, Yu Deng felt guilty. Knowing he had done something wrong, he didn’t know how to explain himself.
“What were you doing just now?”
But the man didn’t blame him. His voice was very soft, carrying a gentle, lingering affection.
Yu Deng toyed with the phone cord and obediently admitted his mistake. “I was reading just now and didn’t notice the time.”
“Why didn’t you call me?” His soft, melodic accent sounded sticky as he turned it around to grumble at Zhou Yuejun instead.
Zhou Yuejun: “I wanted you to call me.”
He wanted Yu Deng to have him in his thoughts, so waiting a bit longer didn’t matter.
Yu Deng’s thoughts weren’t that deep; he just felt that Zhou Yuejun was looking for trouble for himself.
“Next time, you call me. If you call, I’ll come down. Otherwise, if I forget, we’ll only have a little time to talk.”
The void in Zhou Yuejun’s heart was instantly filled. “Alright.”
“How are things at school? Are you used to it yet?”
“I’m not used to it at all!”
The young boy threw a bit of a tantrum and began to complain.
“It’s so hot. I just finished bathing, but by the time I walked back to the dorm, I was covered in sweat again. I’m all stinky, like I didn’t even wash.”
“I have to lug water from the water room back to the dorm. It’s so tiring.”
“Also, some people don’t flush the toilet. It’s disgusting.”
Yu Deng let out a torrent of grievances. He sounded truly pitiful, struggling to adapt to everything.
The words “Then don’t study” were suppressed in the depths of Zhou Yuejun’s heart, but he never let them out.
He had confidence in himself; he felt he could provide for Yu Deng, so it didn’t matter if the boy didn’t learn anything.
But in his bones, he felt a natural reverence for education.
One still needed to be cultured.
Of course, Zhou Yuejun’s heart ached for him. “Then I’ll go to the school every day to fetch water for you.”
“I checked today; the area outside the restrooms is very empty. You can set up a curtain and wash there when there aren’t many people around.”
Yu Deng didn’t know if Zhou Yuejun was joking or not.
Even though he really wanted to enjoy Zhou Yuejun’s kindness, he felt it was unnecessary.
Coming all that way just to fetch water for him? Not even a landlord would be this good at exploiting people.
“Forget it.”
His voice was soft and lacked energy, but it touched the man’s heart, leaving it both sour and sweet.
Zhou Yuejun didn’t think Yu Deng was being dramatic; he was genuinely worried. He thought of a new solution. “How about I hire a helper for you to bring you food and fetch your water?”
“There are students at the school from poor families who want to earn extra money.”
“The hot water supply is slow in the winter and there are too many people. You have to fight for it, and you won’t win. If you use cold water to wash your face, you’ll get chilblains.”
Yu Deng: “…”
Even though Zhou Yuejun made him sound quite useless, it seemed to be the truth.
Yu Deng was very tempted by this proposal, but he felt it was awkward. “No one would be willing.”
“Except for you, no one else would do work for me.”
Once in university, students had strong self-esteem. To put it nicely, it was “work-study,” but to put it bluntly, it was being an errand boy. It was easy to be looked at through colored glasses.
Zhou Yuejun countered, “Why wouldn’t anyone be willing? Isn’t Ning Qian willing?”
“Would he be willing even if you didn’t give him money?”
Suddenly, Zhou Yuejun let out a chuckle, his tone abruptly turning strange. “Then should I find you another one at school?”
“Find another what?”
Yu Deng suddenly realized what Zhou Yuejun meant by “finding another one.”
Finding another boyfriend!
“Find my foot!”
“You’re talking nonsense!”
Wait, he wasn’t even ready to give Zhou Yuejun a “green hat” yet, and Zhou Yuejun was already this impatient?
Yu Deng wanted to scold Zhou Yuejun a bit more, but a finger suddenly poked him twice. “Classmate…”
Yu Deng knew someone else wanted to use the phone.
He turned his head and saw a boy with dripping wet hair. He quickly said goodbye to Zhou Yuejun.
“Someone else needs the phone. I’m hanging up.”
Before hanging up, Yu Deng couldn’t help but goad him. “You should earn more money and buy me a phone too.”
Yu Deng wanted to leave as soon as he hung up, but that person called out to him again.
“Um, classmate.”
Yu Deng was confused. Only then did he take a serious look at the person in front of him.
Could he be from the same major?
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